Brake-leverage system.



' A No. 872,661. PATENTED DEG. s, 1907.

G.l MAGL'OSKIE.

BRAKE LEVERAGE SYSTEM. APPLIUATION FILED APR.25.1907.

v Wltnesses 1- Inventor.:

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i ordinarily employed so that theonly effect of a parrain srarnsrrrrniv @wieo l GEORGE MACLOSKIE, OF SOHENECTADY, NEW YORK, A SSIGNOR 'IOy GENERAL ELECTRIC I i COMPANY, A CORPORATION OF NEW YORK.

BRAKE-LEVERAGE SYSTEM.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Dee. 3, 1907.

Application filed April 25. 1907. Serial No. 370.180.

Systems, of which the following is a speci cation. y

My' invention relates to brake leverage systems, and is particularly applicable to combined air and hand brakes such as are onel-ectrio cars, and its object is to increase the reliability of such systems, y

The piston of an air brake cylinder is ordinarily connected to the brake shoes through an equalizing leveragev system comprising brakecylinder levers connected to each other by a tie rod and each connected to a truck rod for pulling the brake shoes against the wheels. When hand brakes are employed in addition to the air brakes, as is customary on electric cars, and when it is desired to secure equalization of brake shoe .pressure in hand operation, the hand brake spindle is frequently connected to the same levera e system that transmits the pressure from tie brake cylinder piston to the brake shoes. i In such systems as ordinarily arranged,'a broken tie rod, truck rod, cylinder lever, or connecting pin between these-parts, renders both-the hand and' air brakes wholly inoperative, land accidents have resulted from such breakage. By my invention I so arrange the system thatany one of the abovementioned parts may break without destroying the control of the brakes, either by hand or by .air pressure. I accomplishv this by providing operative connections between the brake cy inder piston and brake shoes independent of the equalizin leverage system, reak in the equah izing leverage system is to destroy the equalizing electwithout rendering the brakes 1noperative.

' My invention will best be understood reference to the accompanying drawing, in

a Figure l shows a plan view andFig. 2 a side elevation of a brake leverage system arranged in accordance with my invention.

In the drawings A represents the brake cylinder, the pipe connections of which are not shown.

equalizing) tion, either by air or by B B represent the brake cylinder levers, AC the tie-rod, and D D the truck rods, arranged and connected. to each other in the usual manner. Truck rods D D en age the circle bars E E which are connecte to the brake shoes F in any suitable manner.

G G represent the hand brake staffs which are connected to the ends of a lever I-I havin a lixed fulcrum at h. This lever is connected to the brake piston ata by ari id connection instead of by the chain usua ly employed.

The'truck rods D D are also connected by chains I I to points on the lever H on opposite sides of its fulcruin.

With the system thus arranged it will be seen that .a break may occur in the tie-rod C, in either cylinder lever B, or in either truck rod D, without rendering the brakes inoperative either by hand or by air. For instance, if the tie-rod C should break, the brakescould be pneumatically operated bT the thrust of the piston transmitted through the rigid 'connection a to the lever H, which would exert a pull through the chains I I on both the truck rods D D. The pressures on the brake shoes of the two trucks will of course not be equalized under these conditions but the brakes will be effectively applied on at leastone of the trucks. The brakes can also be operated by hand through the lever II and chains l I. A

It either .brake cylinder lever B breaks, the effect on the operation is precisely thesame as though the tie-rod broke, that is,- the feature ol' the operation is den ut otherwise the brake applicahand, is not inter- If one oi the truck rods D stroyed;

fered with.

breaks, thebrakes for one truck are rendered inoperative but the brakes of the other truck may be a plied either by air or by `hand ,throu h t e lever H and the chain I connecte to the truck rod for that truck. A broken pin in the connections betweenthe brake cylinder levers, tie-rod, and truck rods, or between the levers and the brakeV cylinder iston can have only the saine effect as a breakin the levers, tie-rod, or truck rods themselves. ranged that a break anywhere in the ing leverage system simply .destroys the equalizing feature and does not otherwise interfere with the application of thebrakes either by air or by hand.

In short, the system is so arl equaliz- What 'I claim as new, and desire to secure byLetters Patent of the United States, is,--

y1. In a brake levera e s stem, in combination with the brake cgIin er, cylinder levers, tie-rod, and brake s oes actuated thereby, operative vconnections from the brake cylinder iston to brake shoes' independent of said evers and tie-rod.)

l 2.y rIn a brake levera e s stemin eombina- Ation with the brake c inA er, cylinder levers,

'tie-rod, and brake s oes actuated thereby,

operative connections from the brake cylinder piston to the brake sho'es inde endent of said levers and tie-rod, and bra e actuating means independent of the brake c linder piston operatively connected bot to said levers and to-said independent con-v nections. n

3. In a brake levera e s stem,.1n comblnation with the brake cyin er, cyllnder levers,

. ,tie-rod and Pbrake shoes operated thereby, a

lever having a fixed fulcrum, a connection from the brake c linder piston to said lever, and connections rom sald lever to the brake Shoes independent of the cylinder levers and tie-rod.

` Y 4. In a brake leverages stem, incombinationV with the' brake cy inder, cylinder levers, tie-rod, and Abrake shoes operated thereby, a lever havin a fixed fulcrum, a connectlon from the brsie cylinder piston to said lever, connections from said lever to the brakellshoes independent of the cylinder` said lever and the brake cylinder piston, and chains Iconnecting said lever to the truck rods. 1

piston.

7. In a brake leverafre system for com- Y bined airand hand bra es, in combination with the brake cylinder, cylinder levers, tierod, truck rods, hand brake s indle, and lever actuated by said hand spin le, l'a connection from said hand actuated lever to the cylinder levers, and independent connections from said lever to the truck rods.

8. In a brake levera e system, in combination with the bra e cylinder, brake shoes, and e ualizing leverage system connecting the Cbrake cylinder piston to the shoes, operative connections between the piston and shoes independent of said equallzing leverage system.

9. In a brake levera e system, in combination with the bra e cylinder, brake shoes, and equalizing leverage system connecting the brake cylinder piston to the shoes, operative connections between the piston and shoes independent of said equalizing leverage s stern, and brake actuating means indepen ent of the brake cylinder piston operatively connected vboth 'toi said equalizing leverage system and to said inde- I pendent connections. .I In witness whereof, I have hereunto set my hand this 23rd day of April, 1907.

l yGEORGE MACLOSKIE.

Witnesses: I l j BENJAMIN B. HULL, HELEN 'ORFoRn 

